For the first time since Apollo 17 touched down on the lunar surface in December 1972, human beings are going back to the Moon. Today, Wednesday, April 1, 2026, NASA's Artemis II mission is scheduled to launch aboard the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and Orion spacecraft.
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NASA astronauts enter final preparations.
Date confirmed: Back to the Moon THIS WEDNESDAY.
Four astronauts (three American, one Canadian) will strap into NASA's Orion capsule atop the towering Space Launch System rocket at Cape Canaveral, Florida, and begin a 10-day journey that will take them (literally) farther from Earth than any human has ever traveled.
They won't land. Not yet. But they will swing around the moon and come back, a critical test flight that marks the beginning of something much bigger. The mission is part of NASA's broader Artemis program, which aims to put astronauts back on the lunar surface by 2028.
The weather looks good. NASA's Space Force meteorologists forecast an 80% chance of favorable conditions at liftoff. Today is expected to be the best day in the entire April 1-6 launch window. The two-hour window opens at 6:24 PM ET and closes at 8:24 PM ET.
Times and how to watch LIVE
NASA is broadcasting every moment of this mission (from pre-launch fueling through splashdown) across multiple free platforms. To make things easier for you, here is the list that provides you all the broadcasting in chronological order:
March 27, 2026
<social>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lg-sDsbJp7E</social>
March 29, 2026
<social>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ii_tmJff7LQ</social>
March 29, 2026
<social>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TQH21XCsp5U</social>
March 30, 2026
<social>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VL3AyQ766vc</social>
March 31, 2026
<social>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1PhQJCzhCOw</social>
April 1, 2026
<social>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaJklsJonD4</social>
April 1, 2026
<social>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3kR2KK8TEs</social>
April 1, 2026
<social>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tf_UjBMIzNo</social>
April 2, 2026
<social>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RwfNBtepa4</social>
This is a developing news story...